Midnight Solace
by CsillaDream
Summary: Levy runs away from home and who else but Gajeel gets chosen to go find her [ - ] oneshot dedicated to Michi (ismichi)


**Dedicated to: ismichi**

**Happy 23rd birthday~**

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><p>[ - ]<p>

**Midnight Solace**

[ - ]

Her lungs burned as her legs threatened to give out but her mind refused to let them slow her. Her mind was the strongest part of her. Levy rounded a corner on the sidewalk; she knew this town the best. She knew all the best hiding spots as a child, she knew where to find what books, what place had the best smoothies but most of all: Levy knew the best spot to be alone.

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><p>An obnoxious ringing cut through the peaceful lull of his drowsiness; turning over onto his stomach, Gajeel reached for the source of the noise. With his dad out of town for a conference, he opted for leaving their house phone within reach in case anyone was looking for his dad.<p>

" 'ello..." His gruff voice, laced heavily with sleep, greeted the other person on the line.

"Gajeel?" At the sound of Levy's mother voice coming through the speaker, the raven instantly felt all drowsiness leave him as he fumbled around so he was sitting at the edge of his bed.

"Yes," He reached over to flick his bedside lamp on as the woman continued on through sobs: "Have you seen Levy recently? She ran off earlier tonight and she normally returns within two hours at most... Is she with you?"

"I haven't seen her since school let out... but if you give me a moment, I'll run out and find her..." He offered calmly to her but as he hung up, his chest felt heavy and he jumped to his feet.

Slipping a pair of pants on, he opted for sliding on his coat over top his black muscle shirt before running out the door; the cold winter air met him angrily, chilling him to the bone. Locking the front door, Gajeel sprinted down the streets for the places that meant the most to the bookworm. With his body busy with running, his mind wandered...

_...the alleyway where we first met. That was the day he had threatened her and the two guys with her, his lackeys leering from behind him as the victimized trio drew closer to one another. The boys doing their best to shield their smaller companion from the delinquents. That day was also the day that Levy's two friends were left battered and bruised, mostly by Gajeel, while Levy was beaten nursing an aching pain his stomach - thanks to the only female delinquent in his group._

_...their middle school track field where he defended her. That day the petite bookworm had been running around the track for their usual warm-up when she and a few of her friends had been stopped by Laxus. He had taken it upon himself to bully many of the weaker students despite his grandfather being the principal of the school. Gajeel was coming back around when he noticed that people making the last turn were glancing back, following the track he came to a stop behind a sobbing Levy. In front of her was Laxus tormenting one of the guys that was often around the petite girl; stepping in between the lanky carrot-topped guy, who immediately slouched against the wooden wall, and Laxus whose attention drifted onto him with a smirk. The punches and kicks he received while denying the angry blonde a fight had been worth it._

_...the smoothie place that Levy dragged him a week later. Despite his scary nature, she refused to take 'no' as an answer and he could feel his former self breaking. That day she had given him a headband as a 'thank you' before muttering that it was a stupid gift but that felt on deaf ears as Gajeel not only accepted it but had put it on. With his raven hair pushed up and out of his face, he felt different. Lighter._

_...the bookstore that six months later she dragged him to for a closing sale. That day she had pleaded for him to carry all the books she was looking to get; somewhere in the six months since the day at Levy's favorite smoothie place, the duo had developed a friendship different than anything she had with anyone else. And for him, it was a friendship that he never had before. They argued, fought, laughed and shared a smoothie since she had spent almost all of her money on books._

His lungs burned slightly as he turned a corner on the sidewalk; he had been running for a couple hours, taking short pauses every time he reached one of the possible places the bookworm could be to look around for any evidence Levy had been there. Gajeel was running out of places before something caught his eye, slowing to an almost stop. He remembered one last place; turning on his heels he ran back the way he came and didn't stop until he came to a stop, bending over to catch his breath, in front of a park.

_...the park where a week ago, he brought up something that had been bothering him for the past month. That day Gajeel finally grew weary of how the petite girl had seemed jumpy and feverish but always denied feeling sick. The sun was setting when Levy finally opened her mouth, only to say 'its nothing' with a smile that seemed broken. The raven didn't press the issue but later when he was seeing her off, he left her with one last comment: "Whatever is bothering you, you can talk to me about it..." that he regretted saying moments later._

"Oi Shrimp!" He called out as he entered the park, "You in here?"

Walking along the lit path, he continued calling out for her until he saw her -sitting on a swing with her back to him. He ran over, despite the fatigue and grabbed her by the back of her collar on her coat. The act had she glancing back before her eyes widened in surprise upon seeing the inky black eyes staring down at her; "G-Gajeel...?" His name fell from her mouth before her face scrunched up as tears broke from her eyes.

Releasing his hold was all it took before Levy raced over and sobbed into his coat, his hand raised to pat the top of her blue hair comfortingly. The raven was glad it was so late, he really **did not** want anyone else seeing him like this.

"So why did you run off like that?" He asked in a low voice.

Sniffling Levy pulled herself far enough away so anything she said wasn't muffled: "I had a fight with my mom..." She mumbled in defeat before leaning back into his coat.

His shoulders visibly relaxed as his hand fell onto her shoulder, "Wanna talk about it?" after saying such a cliche thing he was sure she was going to laugh at him later.

Her body seemed to tense for a moment before relaxing with a soft sigh as Levy wiped her eyes with her hands: "I don't think I'm ready to think about it again..." She shook her head, earning another comforting pat on the head that helped a new set of tears break past her defenses. The argument floated to the forefront of her mind and the petite bookworm did her best to wipe away the new tears.

The expression on her face was still so broken -like one wrong step would completely break her- but before Gajeel could try and mend it, an annoying ringtone broke the atmosphere between them.

"Ah, its Lucy..." Answering her phone, the raven saw as the petite bookworm did her utmost to sound herself as she spoke to her best friend; if it wasn't for showing up minutes before, Gajeel was sure he would have believed her act. He stayed silent, taking a seat on one of the swings, as he waited until she was off the phone to pick up their conversation again.

Taking the swing beside him, "See you tomorrow at school then, Lucy~" Levy laughed before hanging up, her previous state of mind melting back onto her face instantly.

"I know it seems like a lot right now," brown eyes met black as he continued, "but you're not the first kid to fight with their parents over something. And you sure won't be the last-Not that I'm saying whatever the fight was between you and your mom was stupid. O-or a-anything..." Gajeel's voice trailed off awkwardly, allowing the distant noise of the city fill the void.

Levy watched in slight awe as he lowered his face until it was hidden in the shadows; Gajeel had never in all the time she's known him spoken like this - it was usually just playful (but arrogantly stubborn) banter or friendly insults coming out his mouth. Blinking away, she stared down at the ground trying to think of some way to fill the silence but came up empty.

"If you don't want to tell me," his voice made her eyes widen and the pause that followed drew her gaze back on him, "that's fine..." He sighed, lifting his head as he reached up to rub the back of his head. Again he paused and once more Levy had no idea how to fill the silence. Inky black eyes darted over to her before quickly darted away: "I used to fight with my dad all the time..."

"...used to?" The question stumbled out before she had a chance to stop it and before she could brush aside her own question, Gajeel answered.

Rubbing the back of his neck again, "Y-Yeah... back when... I was a delinquent," the last word left a heavy atmosphere between them but crumbled slightly as Gajeel coughed, "We used to... fight... argue... you name it... he would always say... he was disappointed in me," chuckling in hopes to lighten the mood, "Can you blame him?"

"...so what happened?" Again her question slipped out and once again he responded.

"uh..." his hand reaching up to pull his coat closer towards his face, "I uh... cleaned up my act... about seven months ago..."

Levy could feel some warmth flooding her face as the meaning behind his words clicked in her mind; roughly seven months ago, he had stepped in when Laxus was bullying two of her best friends. That day she had seen the person behind the scary demeanor and curiosity had bloomed, watching the delinquent take hit after hit. The next day she had demanded to thank him even if, as she voiced, he didn't really deserve it - when he actually followed behind her to her favorite smoothie shop, the curiosity had sparked once again. After six months, her curiosity had developed a more affectionate side.

After what felt like an eternity of stillness, Gajeel stood up: "How about we get you home? Or some place warm?" He suggested, stepping away from the swings but before he could get far something tugged on his coat. More accurately, _someone _tugged on his coat.

Levy, still holding onto his coat, stood from her spot; it was now or never: "we fought about college... she wants me to pursue something concrete,"

"And what do you want to do?"

"I don't know..." She waited for him to speak but when he didn't she chanced a glance up at him; Gajeel seemed in deep thought, which did not suit him, and the sight of it made Levy smile: "So are you going to walk me home or not?"

She waited for his reaction that was sure to come; as if on cue, the raven turned to her and without missing a beat responded: "Depends, are you gonna walk or am I gonna have to carry you like a rag doll?" His eyes narrowed with annoyance.

Releasing her hold, Levy walked away with a confident stride earning a more rowdy expression of annoyance from her companion; the duo walked side-by-side, letting their banter entertain them until they had reached Levy's house. Turning around with her back to the front door, Levy's features softened: "Thanks for telling me about the fights with your dad,"

"Oh... uh... j-just don't... tell anyone" He muttered, stuffing his hands in his coat pockets.

"I won't"

"See you tomorrow then" With a short wave, Gajeel began his way back home.

"Ah, wait!" The moment he turned back towards her, Levy swore time stopped just long enough for her previous courage to come back: "Thank you for finding me and tomorrow," pausing for just a moment, "meet me at Strauss' Diner after school" Without waiting for an answer, she slipped inside and shut the door behind her. A bubble of excitement and nerves filled her stomach but that was put on pause when she saw her mom appear from the other end of the hall.

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><p><strong>Csilla: I can't believe I wrote something for another Fairy Tail couple that DID NOT involve any Gratsu ;w; (it was really hard but that's okay because its for someone who has actually seen me grow as a writer &amp;she's my best friend)<strong>

**I hope this was fluffy and counts as a "happy" Gajevy oneshot...**

**&I hope Gajeel is ACTUALLY in character because I've only used him twice (I think) in my fics - i****f not, well... I tried xD**

**&&please no one expect more... I might do another if Michi still ship them next year (or someone makes a REALLY interesting oneshot idea)**


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